Arkansas State picked up their 10th commitment for the Class of 2013 Thursday afternoon when Bentonville, Ark. Linebacker Garrett Kaufman gave his verbal pledge to the coaching staff.

Kaufmann (6-1, 225) held offers from Georgetown and Harvard in addition to Arkansas State. Arkansas, Rice, Vanderbilt, and Colorado also showed considerable interest.

He spoke with RedWolfReport.com about his commitment to the Red Wolves.

"The coaching staff is just great," said Kaufmann. "They make the team feel like a family and have that whole environment there, and Arkansas State is just unlike any school I've ever visited. I thought is over, and decided to call and commit. Arkansas State is where I want to be."

Kaufmann amassed 114 tackles last season where he only played one half of football for the majority of the season. He also amassed multiple interceptions, forced fumbles, and fumble recoveries. However, his grade point average and ACT score may be more impressive than his accolades on the field.

"I had a lot of the Ivy league schools looking at me," said Kaufmann. "I have a 4.0 grade point and I scored a 25 on my ACT, so I'm really proud of that."

Kaufmann's team, the Bentonville Tigers, has been one of Arkansas' most dominate high school football teams over the past couple of years. He spoke about that as well.

"It is a great feeling to be able to play for a team like Bentonville," said Kaufmann. "When you are one of the best, everyone is gunning for you, so you have to go out and compete as hard as you can each and every game. When you are number one, everyone wants to take you out."

"It is great to play for one of the best coaches in the state, Coach Barry Lunney," Kaufmann added. "He is such a good man and a good coach. He teaches us that football is not the only that that is important in life. You have to have a good spiritual life, stay humble, and keep God first."

Kaufmann is also a stand-out player on the Tigers baseball team, but he says he plans on playing football at the collegiate level.

"I thought about trying to play baseball at Arkansas State," said Kaufmann. "But, I think I'm just going to concentrate 100% on football so I can be the absolute best that I can be."

He is also planning on attending camp at Arkansas State on July 22nd.

"Yeah, even though I'm committed, I'm still going to go to camp," said Kaufmann. "I just want to take the opportunity to get some coaching from the Red Wolf coaches, and learn as much as I can so I can begin to apply it this season."

Kaufmann also spoke about his goals for his senior season.

"I just want to lead the defense in every category," said Kaufmann. "I want to do that and get my team back to the state championship game. I also want to win all of our non-conference games. That is really important to our team."

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